Beginning in early November 2021, the Biden Administration plans to modify international COVID-19 travel restrictions for those fully vaccinated.  At that time, the country-specific travel bans for the 26 Schengen (European) countries, the United Kingdom, Ireland, India, China, Brazil, South Africa, and Iran will be replaced with a new COVID-19 vaccine and testing requirement. 

Those flying and other travelers will need to provide proof of full vaccination and proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within 3 days of boarding a flight to the U.S.  Which vaccines will qualify are still unknown (i.e., will the Russian and Chinese vaccines qualify is not yet known).

Limited exceptions will be available, such as for children, COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial participants, and those with humanitarian needs.

A new contact tracing system will be created for all inbound travelers to provide phone numbers and email addresses in case tracing is needed. 

Still many consuls are closed or are very backlogged for those who also need new visas. 

Canada and Mexico Bans

The travel restrictions at land ports of entry along the US/Mexico/Canada border will be extended and remain limited to “essential travel” which will continue to cover the following:

• Travel by U.S. Citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents.
• Travel for medical purposes (e.g., to receive medical treatment).
• Travel to attend educational institutions.
• Travel to work in the U.S. (e.g., work in the agriculture industry who must travel between the U.S. and Canada or Mexico in furtherance of such work).
• Travel for emergency response and public health purposes (e.g., government officials or emergency responders entering the United States to support federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial government efforts to respond to COVID-19 or other emergencies).
• Travel for lawful cross-border trade (e.g., truck drivers supporting the movement of cargo between the U.S. and Canada and Mexico).
• Official government travel or diplomatic travel.
• Military-related travel or operations.

As soon as further details are available, we will provide updates on the U.S. international travel policy.